Joseph Guillermo Jones II (born July 15, 1976), better known by his stage name Jim Jones (formerly Jimmy Jones), is an American rapper, music video director, and record executive. He is an original member of the hip hop collective the Diplomats (also known as Dipset), alongside longtime friend and fellow Harlem native, Cam'ron. In 2004, he released his debut solo album '' On My Way to Church''. The release of his second album, '' Harlem: Diary of a Summer'' in 2005, coincided with Jones landing an executive position in A&R at Entertainment One Music. A year later he was on his third album '' Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment)'' (2006), which spawned his biggest single to date, " We Fly High". The song reached number five on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and was certified platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

(RIAA). Jones' first major-label album '' Pray IV Reign'' was released in March 2009 by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

. The album spawned the hit single " Pop Champagne" (with Ron Browz featuring Juelz Santana). In April 2011, Jones released his fifth album, '' Capo'', which was supported by the lead single, " Perfect Day" (featuring Chink Santana). He returned in May 2019, for his sixth album titled ''

El Capo ''Marlon Moreno El Capo'', commonly known as ''El Capo'', is a television series made by Fox Telecolombia and written by Gustavo Bolivar for RCN Television, based on its namesake book. The series follows the story of the fictional drug lord ...

''.

Early life

Jones, son of an Aruban mother and Puerto Rican father, was raised in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Harl ...

mainly by his maternal grandmother.

Music career

2004–05: ''On My Way to Church'' and ''Harlem: Diary of a Summer''

'' On My Way to Church'' is Jones' debut album. The album spawned two singles that made the US ''Billboard''

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart: " Certified Gangstas" (featuring Cam'ron,

Bezel Bezel may refer to: Object * Bezel (jewellery), the rim which encompasses and fastens a jewel, watch crystal, lens or other object * Bezel, the sloping facets of the crown of a cut gem after gem cutting * Screen bezel, a space or frame around a d ...

and

The Game The Game or The Games may refer to: Sports and games * The Game (dice game) (German: ''Das Spiel''), a dice game designed by Reinhold Wittig * The Game (mind game), a mind game, the objective of which is to avoid thinking about The Game itself * ...

), which reached number 80, and " Crunk Muzik" (featuring his Dipset cohorts Cam'ron and Juelz Santana), which reached number 84. The album peaked at number 18 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, number three on '' Billboard'''s Independent Albums chart, and number four on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine that ranks contemporary R&B, R&B and hip hop music, hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. Th ...

chart. '' Harlem: Diary of a Summer'', Jones' second album, reached number five on the ''Billboard'' 200 and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Independent Albums charts, selling 350,000 copies. Three of its singles placed on the ''Billboard'' R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart: "Baby Girl", which reached number 58; "Summer Wit' Miami", which reached number 78; and "What You Been Drankin' On?" (featuring Diddy,

Paul Wall Paul Michael Slayton (born March 11, 1981), better known by his stage name Paul Wall, is an American rapper and DJ. He has spent much of his career affiliated with Swishahouse Records, and has released several albums under the label and collabo ...

, and Jha Jha), which reached number 106.

2006–09: ''Hustler's P.O.M.E.'', ''Pray IV Reign'' and ''The Rooftop''

Jones' third album '' Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment)'', was more commercial and once again featured Dipset members along with Lil Wayne. The album spawned Jones' biggest single to date, "We Fly High". Jones introduced a signature dance move in the "We Fly High" video, throwing up a fake jump shot every time the ad-lib "Ballin!'" was stated in the song. This dance move became so popular that it inspired

Michael Strahan Michael T. Strahan ( ; born November 21, 1971) is an American television personality, journalist, and former professional football player. He played his entire 15-year professional career as a defensive end for the New York Giants of the Natio ...

and Plaxico Burress to do the dance move after big plays during a ''

Monday Night Football ''ESPN Monday Night Football'' (abbreviated as ''MNF'' and also known as ''ESPN Monday Night Football on ABC'' for simulcasts) is an American live television broadcast of weekly National Football League (NFL) games currently airing on ESPN, A ...

'' game in 2006. From 2006 to 2008, Jones released a collaborative album with his rap group ByrdGang, titled '' M.O.B.: The Album'', which peaked at number 29 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 16,000 the first week in stores and eventually selling 65,000 units. He has two Christmas compilation albums, '' A Dipset X-Mas'' and '' A Tribute To Bad Santa Starring Mike Epps'', and a load of mixtapes, including ''

Harlem's American Gangster ''Harlem's American Gangster'' is the sixth mixtape by American hip hop recording artist Jim Jones released to digital retailers on February 19, 2008 under Koch Records. The album peaked at number three on the ''Billboard'' Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album ...

'', which peaked at number 19 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart and spawned his single "Love Me No More". Jones' fourth studio album, '' Pray IV Reign'', released March 24, 2009, was his major record label debut. The album peaked at number nine on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. On July 8, Jones released a promotional single titled "The Good Stuff" featuring NOE. The album features " Pop Champagne", producer Ron Browz, and Juelz Santana. A bonus track on the album is "Jackin' Swagga From Us" with Twista, NOE, and Lil Wayne, which takes shots at T.I. and Jay-Z for allegedly stealing their styles and mocking their song "

Swagga Like Us "Swagga Like Us" is a song by American hip hop recording artists Jay-Z and T.I. The song features guest verses from fellow American rappers Lil Wayne and Kanye West, the latter of whom also produced the song, constructing primarily around a ...

". It is his first solo album under

. In 2009, Jim Jones became Vice President of Urban A&R at Koch Records, which is now

E1 Music MNRK Music Group (pronounced "monarch", formerly known as Koch Records and eOne Music) is a New York City-based independent record label and music management company. It was formed in 2009 from the music assets of Koch Entertainment, which had ...

. On June 11, Jim Jones appeared on BET's '' 106 & Park'' along with DJ Webstar and announced that they will be releasing an album together titled '' The Rooftop''.Video: Jim Jones & DJ Webstar on 106 & Park
. Nahright.com (June 11, 2009). Retrieved on 2012-01-11. He also announced that his documentary, ''This Is Jim Jones'', will be released June 30, 2009. The first single from the album is " Dancin on Me", featuring Juelz Santana. It was officially released via iTunes on April 28. On September 22, hip hop website, RapRuckus, stated the album was scheduled for an October 6, 2009 release. The second single is titled "She Can Get It". In late 2009, Jones left

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

. According to XXLMag.com, Jones signed a deal to release his next solo album on E1, as well as a mixtape.

2010–present: ''Capo'', Dipset reunion and ''Vampire Life'' series

The mixtape, titled ''The Ghost of Rich Porter'', was released March 23, 2010. In April 2010, Cam'ron and Jim Jones announced they ended their feud. On June 26, 2010, Jones reunited with Cam'ron and Juelz Santana on a track titled "Salute", marking the return of the Diplomats. They have begun working on an album together, and have been reportedly working with Dr. Dre. In 2010 it was confirmed that Jones had started up a new record label imprint with

Damon Dash Damon Anthony Dash (born May 3, 1971) is an American entrepreneur and record executive. Dash is best known as co-founder of Roc-A-Fella along with Jay-Z and Kareem Burke. Early life Born in New York City, Dash swept the floors of a local ba ...

entitled Splash Records. On April 5, 2011, Jones' released his fifth studio album, '' Capo'', on E1.Capo: Jim Jones: Music
Amazon.com. Retrieved on January 11, 2012. On November 3, Jones released a mixtape, titled ''Capo Life'', to promote the album and celebrate the launch of hi
new website
The lead single off ''Capo'', " Perfect Day" featuring Chink Santana and LOGiC, was released on iTunes December 7, 2010. The album is the first to feature Cam'ron since ''Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment)''. Other guest appearances include rappers

Game A game is a structured form of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (su ...

Lloyd Banks Christopher Charles Lloyd (born April 30, 1982), better known by his stage name Lloyd Banks, is an American rapper. He began his career as a member of East Coast hip hop group G-Unit, alongside childhood friends 50 Cent and Tony Yayo. After ...

Prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and ...

Raekwon Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon The Chef, or simply Raekwon (), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream succe ...

and R&B singers

Rell Rell may refer to: *Jodi Rell (born 1946) American politician, 87th Governor of Connecticut * Hell Rell (born 1979), stage name of Durrell Mohammad American rap artist *Rell, stage name of Gerrell Gaddis, American R&B singer *Rell Sunn Rell K ...

and Ashanti among others, and features notable production from longtime collaborator Chink Santana, Aaron LaCrate, Wyclef Jean, Drumma Boy and Lamont "LOGiC" Coleman. The album peaked at number 20 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 21,000 copies in its first week, making ''Capo'' his lowest charting album to date. On October 1, 2011, when Funkmaster Flex premiered a song on

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

's Hot 97 titled "It Ain't My Fault" featuring rappers T-Rex, Boogie Black and Sen City, it was revealed that it was the first offering from Webstar and Jones' upcoming second collaborative effort ''The Rooftop 2''. In the summer of 2011, he was featured on Randyn Julius "Party Tonight" with Teyana Taylor and fellow Dispet member Cam'ron. On October 30, 2011, for the

Halloween Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. ...

holiday, Jones released a mixtape titled ''Vampire Life: We Own the Night''. The tape features twenty-four songs, including bonus tracks, freestyles and

guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...

s from Meek Mill,

J.R. Writer Rusty Brito (born May 28, 1985) better known by his stage name J.R. Writer, is a Dominican American rapper and freestyle champion. He was also a member of East Coast hip hop group The Diplomats. Career Writer is from Harlem, New York. He has r ...

, Chink Santana, 2 Chainz, Maino,

Yo Gotti Mario Sentell Giden Mims (born May 19, 1981), known professionally as Yo Gotti, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record executive. In 1996, Gotti released his debut album ''Youngsta's On a Come Up'' under the alias Lil Yo. He went on to re ...

and Jadakiss among others. On May 1, 2012, Jones released the second installment of his ''Vampire Life'' series entitled ''Vampire Life 2'', it went on to be downloaded over 300,000 times on mixtape-sharing website DatPiff. On March 11, 2013, Jones announced he was working on two new mixtapes ''V3 (Vampire Life 3)'' and ''The Ghost Of Rich Porter 2''. ''Vampire Life 3'' was released on August 13, 2013. On December 3, 2013, Jim Jones released an

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP), titled '' We Own the Night''. The EP was supported by the single "Nasty Girl", featuring American singer Jeremih. On June 24, 2014, Jones released a single titled "Wit the Shit", featuring American singer

Trey Songz Tremaine Aldon Neverson (born November 28, 1984), known professionally as Trey Songz, is an American R&B singer and rapper. His debut album, '' I Gotta Make It'', was released in 2005 through Atlantic Records. His follow-up album, '' Trey Day'' ...

. In July 2014, Jones revealed he would be releasing another EP, titled ''We Own the Night Pt. 2: Memoirs of a Hustler''; it was released on September 9. On January 1, 2015, DJ Funkmaster Flex announced via

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

that he had spoken to fellow Diplomat members Cam'ron, Jim Jones and Juelz Santana about an upcoming Diplomats mixtape which included fellow member

Freekey Zeekey Ezekiel Giles (born October 13, 1975), better known by his stage name Freekey Zekey, is an American rapper and music executive best known as a founding member of The Diplomats, a group he helped form in Harlem in 1997 alongside his childhood fr ...

. He also stated that he would be hosting the mixtape along with DJs/producers

DJ Khaled Khaled Mohammed Khaled (born November 26, 1975), known professionally as DJ Khaled, is an American DJ, record executive, record producer and rapper. Khaled first gained recognition as a radio host in the 1990s on the radio station 99 Jamz, a ...

, Swizz Beatz and DJ Mustard.

Other ventures

Byrd Gang

Jones introduced Byrd Gang in 2008. The group released their debut album, '' M.O.B.: The Album'' on

Asylum Records Asylum Records is an American record label, founded in 1971 by David Geffen and partner Elliot Roberts. It was taken over by Warner Communications (now the Warner Music Group) in 1972, and later merged with Elektra Records to become Elektra/Asyl ...

Fashion designing

Jones and

co-own "Vampire Life Clothing".

Acting career

Jones made his acting debut in the film '' State Property 2''.He also appeared on the show ''Crash: The Series''. Along with releasing the album ''Capo'', Jones headlined in an off-Broadway musical called ''Hip-Hop Monologues: Inside the Life and Mind of Jim Jones'', produced by

and Footage Entertainment.

Reality television

Jones also appears in seasons 1 and 2 of the

VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Commun ...

show '' Love & Hip Hop: New York'' (which premiered March 14, 2011 and November 11, 2011, respectively); the show loosely follows events in his personal life and that of his fiancée, Chrissy Lampkin. Jones also stars in season 1 of the

show '' Chrissy & Mr. Jones''; the show follows him and Lampkin, focusing on their personal lives.

Sports management

In December 2017, he became part owner of the Richmond Roughriders of the

American Arena League The American Arena League (AAL) is a professional indoor football minor league that began playing in 2018. The league was initiated by a merger between Arena Pro Football (APF) and the Can-Am Indoor Football League (Can-Am), although the AAL o ...

Controversies

Junior M.A.F.I.A.

At an altercation at the Rucker, members of Junior Mafia physically assaulted rap group, the Diplomats including Jim Jones. Jones was seen on camera, fleeing the altercation.

Tru Life

In a 2006 interview Tru Life, responding to rumors, called Dipset bosses Cam'ron and Jim Jones "bitches." Jones responded by challenging Tru Life to fisticuffs, with a US$50,000 wager. Tru Life responded by stealing Jones' necklaces and taunting him on the 2007 mixtape ''Tru York'',Tru York Mixtape track listing"
J-loveonline.com. Retrieved on January 11, 2012 which featured "a Photoshopped Jim Jones in a Borat-style thong and Cam'ron as a Seventh Avenue transsexual hooker" as the cover. The Diplomats retaliated by hacking Tru Life's MySpace page, replacing the faces on the ''Tru York'' cover with True Life's and Jay-Z's.

GUCCI

In February 2022 Jones posted an Instagram video in which he detailed his experience of being racially profiled as a result of receiving poor customer service . He expressed his disappointment in Gucci’s employees by claiming that “These black people are more racist than white people when they get they job”. He goes on to further detail the event that left him a victim by explaining “I still ain’t get no sparkling water, I still ain’t get no champagne. I still ain’t get nothing.”

Jay Z

Jim Jones has criticized Jay Z's performance as president of

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

. Jay Z responded with a "diss" track called "Brooklyn High" over the beat from Jones' " We Fly High". On December 22, 2008, Jones punched and kicked a "friend and colleague" of Jay Z at a Manhattan

Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French high-end luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ranging from luxury bags and lea ...

store; he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault the following November.

ASAP Mob

In a 2014 interview Jim Jones characterized ASAP Mob's style as "not street": " ey're artistic, but they're not from the street... We got bonafide swag and the definition of get fly... Price point and high fashion don't really make it cool." ASAP Mob member

ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...

responded in his solo single "Multiply" by criticizing that characterization as a disingenuous ploy to sell overpriced branded merchandise.

Azealia Banks

In July 2012, a social media-related conflict between Jim Jones and rapper Azealia Banks had started after Banks disrespected the rapper for getting more credit for her phrase "Vamp", as in Jones' mixtape series and label of the same name, Vampire Life, or his track "Vamp Life". Enraged, Banks disrespected Jim Jones again via a track titled "Succubi".

Discography

Solo albums * '' On My Way to Church'' (2004) * '' Harlem: Diary of a Summer'' (2005) * '' Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment)'' (2006) * '' Pray IV Reign'' (2009) * '' Capo'' (2011) * ''

Wasted Talent The second season of '' Family Guy'' first aired on the Fox network in 21 episodes from September 23, 1999, to August 1, 2000. The series follows the dysfunctional Griffin family—father Peter, mother Lois, daughter Meg, son Chris, baby Stew ...

'' (2018) * ''

'' (2019) Collaboration albums * '' The Rooftop'' (with DJ Webstar) (2009) * ''The Fraud Department'' (with Harry Fraud) (2021) * ''Gangsta Grillz: We Set The Trends'' (with DJ Drama) (2022) * ''The Lobby Boyz'' (with Maino) (2022)

Filmography

Awards and honors

"Pop Champagne" was nominated for Best Collaboration at the 2009 Urban Music Awards.

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Jim 1976 births American rappers of Caribbean descent American music industry executives American music video directors American people of Aruban descent American people of Puerto Rican descent Businesspeople from New York City Columbia Records artists MNRK Music Group artists Hispanic and Latino American male actors Hispanic and Latino American rappers Living people People from Harlem The Diplomats members Rappers from the Bronx Rappers from Manhattan Gangsta rappers Participants in American reality television series African-American male rappers 21st-century American rappers Bloods